West Virginia in the Civil War |

Emerging Civil War

Welcome to Emerging Civil War's non-stop coverage of the John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry! Today is the 160th anniversary of that event. Here's a great...

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The great-grandson of Augustine Washington, who was the half-brother of George Washington, Lewis W. Washington lived at Beall-Air, in Jefferson County. Washington was visited in September 1859 by John Edwin Cook, who was scouting the countryside for abolitionist John Brown, noting the residences of slave owners and resources that would be useful in the upcoming raid on Harpers Ferry. Washington showed Cook a sword presented by Frederick the Great to George Washington and a set of pistols given to General Washington by Lafayette. Early on the morning after his October 16, 1859, raid on Harpers Ferry, John Brown sent a detachment into the country to collect prominent slaveholders as hostages. Washington, some of his slaves, his pistols, and sword were captured and brought to the engine house at Harpers Ferry along with other hostages. Brown carried the George Washington sword during the ensuing battle. When the engine house was taken by U.S. Marines under the command of Col. Robert E. Lee, Washington pointed out Brown to the storming party. Read more at e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia https://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/902 ... See MoreSee Less

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That sword is now in the New York State Museum in Albany.

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American Battlefield Trust

#OnThisDay October 16th, 1859, John Brown and his raiders take the armory at Harpers Ferry. Brown was a staunch abolitionist who sought to start a slave revolt in Virginia&perio...

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West Virginia in the Civil War

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The 5 black men in John Brown’s raid.... ... See MoreSee Less

The 5 black men in John Brown's raid were forgotten

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It was chilly and damp on Sunday evening on Oct. 16, 1859, when abolitionist John Brown climbed onto a horse-drawn wagon for the 5-mile ride down a dark country road

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Emerging Civil War

Today is the 160th anniversary of John Brown's famous raid on Harpers Ferry, and we've been posting related content on the ECW blog for a few days now. It's all about Harp...

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On this day 160 years ago-October 16, 1859-abolitionist John Brown led his famous, ill-fated raid on the U.S. arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia). Brown hoped to incite a slave rebellion and arm slaves with weapons from the arsenal. Brown was deeply religious and believed that he was chosen by God to eradicate slavery from the United States. His raid failed, and he and several of his followers (including several of his own sons) were killed, wounded, or captured by a contingent of U.S. Marines that responded to the raid. The Marines were temporarily commanded by Army Col. Robert E. Lee. Brown was tried for treason and convicted. Just before his execution by hanging on December 2, 1859, he made a prescient prediction: "The crimes of this guilty land will not be purged away but with blood." The Civil War began less than 16 months later. ... See MoreSee Less

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From the ECW YouTube page: Chris Mackowski goes inside John Brown's fort in advance of the 160th anniversary of Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry. https://youtu.be/KSbnCJAlCVk ... See MoreSee Less

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Emerging Civil War

Here’s another C-SPAN video from our most recent annual symposium. This one features Jon-Erik Gilot speaking about the “forgotten battle” of Philippi.

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Doc of the Day Letter and invoice of materials sent by Capt. John H. Oley to the 5th West Virginia Infantry, October 12, 1861. (Ms2009-096) http://www.wvculture.org/history/docoftheday/doc1012A.html ... See MoreSee Less

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West Virginia Archives and History

On October 13, 1863, Union troops under Captain William H. Mattingly defeated a Confederate force led by Colonel William L. Jackson at the Battle of Bulltown. &NewLine...